Guide to success for Year 11 students Revision techniques that actually work Psychologists warn many favourite revision techniques will not lead to exam success. This is what the research suggests Only two of the ten techniques examined turned out to be really effective. The ones with the most impact were: i) Testing yourself ii) Spreading out your revision over time. STRATEGY Spreading your work out over time Testing yourself regularly Switching between subjects regularly Explaining things to others IMPACT ON RETENTION HIGH Review work and prioritise areas that need more focus. Plan revision from Easter to the end of the exams. Spread out rather than cramming into a few weeks. HIGH Review a topic, test your recall using look, cover and check or by working through past exam questions. MODERATE Make sure you plan to revise a different subject each day. Map this out in your revision timetable. MODERATE Talk through a topic to a friend or
member of your family. Explaining how to solve a problem MODERATE Talk through an answer to an exam question with someone else. Summarising A useful technique is to summarise information first. Scan articles, highlighting and underlining quickly go over text and sub heading looking for key information, then highlight or write summaries or short notes of what you need to know. This method will save you having to read through an entire page or article. The summary can be represented as the mind map below put onto flash cards. Make up flash cards use bullet points and unite the main points underneath. Make up mind maps an example of a mind map can be found below and on the following website https://www.examtime.com/mind-maps/ :-
Although mnemonics are low impact, they can be useful to remember specific points this is where a rhyme or funny sentence is used to remember lists, e.g. RICE for the instruction for treating a sprain - Rest the injured area, Ice the sprain, Compress with a wrap or bandage, Elevate the injured area.) Read books rather than the internet if you are in the habit of using the internet to revise, then there is a real risk of falling into bad habits and wasting time by checking your email/social media accounts or being side-tracked by interesting news stories etc. If you find that this is happening to you then drastic action is required. Unplug your computer and conduct your revision and research with books rather than online. Test yourself regularly Learn, Test, Learn, Test, Test, Test, Test, Test talk things through with a friend. Explaining to others is the best way to check yourself. Once you have summarised and condensed onto flash cards or mind maps, test regularly. Students who can test themselves or try to retrieve material from their memory are going to learn that material better in the long run, repeated testing works Making a revision timetable Use the following website:- http://getrevising.co.uk Put all your exam dates into the website and it will make a list of what subjects and information you need to know. Arrange your revision timetable; e.g.
5.00 p.m. 6.00 p.m. revise 6.00 p.m. 6.45 p.m. dinner 6.45 p.m. 7.45 p.m. revise 7.45 p.m. - relaxation Try to identify gaps in your knowledge. Discipline yourself and get into the habit of revising regularly, e.g. Home by 5.00 p.m. Snack. One hour between 5.15 p.m. 6.15 p.m. 15 minute break. One hour between 6.30 p.m. and 7.30 p.m. Evening meal. Bed by 10.30 p.m. Break subjects down into manageable chunks and plan study time for each one. Assign more time to topics you have difficulty with or where your knowledge is weak. Ask teachers to go through with you any sections you still do not understand. As the exam dates approach, try to plan to spend time completing practice questions so you are used to doing things within a time limit. A few other important things A quiet work space away from mobile phones, Facebook etc. Sleep has been proven to improve memory and retention.
Regular breaks to refresh the mind. Look after yourself Relaxation time - If you are revising every day then make sure you have some relaxation and fun time at the end of every day. Have set breaks at certain times where you go for a short walk or make a drink for yourself etc. Taking your mind off studying for short periods of time can help you to stay fresh and stop you from burning yourself out. East sensibly For maximum performance your body and mind needs fuel to be able to concentrate and focus. By eating nutritious and healthy foods (i.e. fruit and vegetables) you can keep your energy levels high which in turn can assist you to remain highly focussed throughout your studies. How can parents help? Build in rewards everyone loves praise. Often praise is reward enough on its own. You may want to build in external motivators, e.g. a shopping trip or a lunch with friends. Recognise how important these exams are and how much time your child will need if they are to do as well as they can. Ensure your child eats breakfast and lunch it will help them to concentrate. Encourage the rest of the family to help by not disturbing revision. Secure a quiet place for study, where their work can be safely kept. Ensure they know the start times of every exam and they allow plenty of time to get to school for the exam.
Remind them that it will soon be over and there will be a good break from school when they can catch up on what they have been missing! How can you tell if your child is revising? They will either be:- Engaging with revision materials in order to test themselves. Testing themselves using published revision resources. Using revision materials to create self-test flashcards. Testing themselves using flashcards. Doing practice papers. They shouldn t be:- Sitting with headphones in, texting a friend with textbooks open in front of them. Highlighting a few words every 10 minutes in between messages. If parents require any support, please contact your child s head of school, Subject Leader or Class Teacher for further advice. And finally
We wish you all the best for the forthcoming examinations and know that your hard work will pay off. But, be assured, these grades help the next step but do not define who you are. Good luck on behalf of all of us at The Hastings Academy.